Bill Gates photographed at the COP26 climate change summit in Glasgow, Scotland, on November 2, 2021.
EVAN VUCCI | AFP | Getty Images
LONDON — Bill Gates appears to have cast doubt on whether the world will be able to keep global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, providing a sobering reminder of how much work needs to be done if climate goals are to be met.
Gates’ comments on global warming, made during the first week of the COP26 climate change summit in Glasgow, are a reference to the Paris Agreement, which aims to “limit global warming to well below 2, preferably to 1.5 degrees Celsius, compared to pre-industrial levels.”
In an excerpt of his interview, which was conducted by U.K. lawmaker Jeremy Hunt for the think tank Policy Exchange, the billionaire seemed skeptical about whether the goal could be met.
“It’s all a matter of degrees, so to speak. That is, you know, hitting 2.5 is better than hitting 3, hitting 2 is better than hitting 2.5,” he said. “1.5 … will be very difficult, I doubt that we’ll be able to achieve that.”
The COP26 summit, delayed a year by the coronavirus pandemic, comes six years after the landmark Paris accord was signed by nearly 200 countries.
The 1.5 degrees Celsius threshold is a crucial global target because beyond this level, so-called tipping points become more likely. Tipping points refer to an irreversible change in the climate system, locking in further global warming.
The Microsoft co-founder also said there was “no comparable feat that mankind has ever achieved to what we need to do for climate change.”
Gates acknowledged that mankind was “much richer today, far more knowledgeable today — we do have the digital tools that enable us to work on these things.”
Expanding on his point, he said: “What happened with solar panels, where they were very expensive and now they’re cheap, or lithium ion batteries, we need to do that for about six other technologies.”
Namechecking green steel, cheap hydrogen and offshore wind, Gates said lots of money would be required and that there were “many paths of innovation.” This innovation would have to be rapid, he added.
“I admit I was worried when they merged the climate department and the business department,” he went on to state. In 2016, the U.K. government combined the Department of Energy and Climate Change with the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.
“I thought, OK, will climate get lost in that? In fact, the right thing happened, which is more business-oriented, analytical thinking came together with people who understood the climate.”
“And that, I think, is why the U.K. has made progress on this. No, the U.K. gets a very good grade on climate progress.”
Tesla is starting to replenish its Model Y inventory in the US after the design changeover, and it is ramping up incentives in China and Europe, suggesting that demand issues persist despite the new Model Y’s introduction.
After Tesla’s disastrous first quarter, shareholders attempted to blame the company’s issues on the transition to the new Model Y, which resulted in limited supply and buyers delaying their deliveries.
There’s no doubt that it impacted Tesla’s performance in Q1, but there were also other clear demand issues.
The automaker stated that it successfully resumed Model Y production to normal levels in record time. Therefore, Model Y supply can’t be blamed going forward and there are reasons to be concerned.
Now, Tesla has officially started to add new inventory Model Ys in the US – confirming that it doesn’t have a backlog of orders for the updated vehicle:
It’s challenging to determine the exact number of new Model Y vehicles Tesla has in stock.
The website Tesla-Info tracks new vehicle listings in the US, but Tesla only lists configurations available in specific markets. After depleting the inventory of the older version of the Model Y in late March, Tesla is now listing 93 new Model Ys in the US:
However, for any of those listings, there could be several Model Ys in inventory, especially considering that Tesla currently has a limited number of options for the new Model Ys.
Tesla’s Model Y configurations also lists most configurations as being available today in most major US markets. This again points to Tesla having no order backlog for the brand-new vehicle.
At least, Tesla has yet to introduce incentives to sell the vehicle in the US, but it does in other markets.
Tesla is having even more issues in Europe, where its sales are crashing. The automaker is also struggling to sell some older Model Ys from its inventory.
Tesla produced about 30,000 more vehicles than it delivered in the first quarter, and it increased its inventory by $1.7 billion.
Electrek’s Take
Some people think that I’m happy to see this, but they couldn’t be more wrong. I’m just emphasizing it because recognizing the problem is the first step toward fixing it, and I want it to be fixed.
The biggest EV automaker failing is not good for EV adoption, and Tesla is going in that direction.
Tesla shareholders need to recognize that the Model Y refresh is not saving Tesla. Sales have been declining since last year, while electric vehicle (EV) sales continue to increase in most markets.
The combination of Elon Musk alienating half of Tesla’s potential customer base and Tesla’s stale lineup due to the focus on self-driving is resulting in an impossible situation for Tesla right now. Something needs to change.
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Greenlane, which is rolling out a US EV charging network for big rigs, just switched on its first electric truck stop in Colton, California.
April 24, 2025: The flagship facility, at the intersection of Interstates 215 and 10, was completed eight months after breaking ground. It’s got 41 OEM-agnostic chargers with 12 pull-through lanes and CCS 400 kW dual-port chargers with liquid-cooled cables. They’re built to handle big Class 8 electric rigs with ease. Twenty-nine bobtail lanes feature CCS 180 kW chargers.
Colton offers a spacious lounge with food and drinks, a water refill station, and restrooms. There’s free wifi, mobile charging stations, and 24/7 customer support. Security includes round-the-clock on-site attendants, security cameras, gated access, and enhanced lighting. Office space is available for leasing, and there’s overnight truck and trailer parking.
It’s the first of several electric charging truck stops planned for the company’s I-15 commercial EV charging corridor. Greenlane plans to expand its network with future sites expected roughly every 60 to 90 miles in Long Beach, Barstow, and Baker, California.
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Greenlane has also secured its first commercial fleet customer, fully electric truckload carrier Nevoya, which will begin operating its fleet of electric trucks out of Colton early next month. Nevoya will use the charging infrastructure and occupy on-site office space. The two companies plan to scale the partnership to include up to 100 of Nevoya’s electric trucks.
Greenlane’s flagship electric charging truck stop
March 11, 2025: Builder and developer Mortenson is constructing the commercial EV charging facility in Colton, which broke ground last September. It will include more than 40 chargers when it comes online for heavy, medium, and light-duty EVs. In its next phase, Greenlane plans to deploy solar panels and battery storage to enhance grid stability, manage peak loads, and increase energy efficiency.
Greenlane’s pull-through lane chargers will be equipped with Alpitronic CCS 400 kW dual-port chargers featuring oil-cooled cables. That means faster charging without the bulk—these cables stay lightweight and easy to handle. For bobtail charging, eFill CCS 180 kW chargers will be available, bringing smart energy management to keep fleet operations running smoothly.
To keep everything in check, ABB’s SCADA system will handle remote monitoring and breaker management, boosting reliability and efficiency. Plus, Greenlane’s sites are built with Trenwa precast cable trench, making it easier to expand EV charging infrastructure and upgrade to megawatt charging as fleet demand grows.
Greenlane’s tech launch
Greenlane, a joint venture between Daimler Truck North America, NextEra Energy, and BlackRock, also debuted its branded digital technology suite as part of its ongoing development of the I-15 Commercial EV Charging Corridor. The products will be rolled out in phases.
Greenlane’s Chief Technology Officer, Raj Jhaveri, said, “Our technology helps maximize uptime and operational efficiency by ensuring vehicles are charged efficiently and ready to meet the demands of their freight schedules.”
The tech rollout includes an app that allows drivers to check charger availability and make reservations in advance, a fleet portal that enables fleet managers and dispatchers to plan and manage routes for their electric fleets, and a new Greenlane website.
Greenlane also now has OnRamp Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) that integrate with existing fleet solutions, providing fleet managers and drivers access to optimized routes, efficient charging and refueling schedules, and related charging data and emissions savings.
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VW’s US self-driving arm, Volkswagen ADMT (Autonomous Driving Mobility & Transport), is partnering with Uber to roll out thousands of autonomous ID. Buzz vans across the US over the next decade.
The plan kicks off in Los Angeles, with testing starting later this year and commercial rides expected to launch in 2026.
The ID. Buzz autonomous driving (AD) vans will have human operators onboard during early testing and launch phases to help fine-tune the tech and keep things safe. Each stage will only move forward once regulators give the green light.
Volkswagen’s mobility brand MOIA is supplying the vehicles and the AD software that’ll run them on Uber’s platform. It’s a full-stack approach to bringing self-driving EVs to ride-hailing, and another sign that the robotaxi race is heating up.
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“Volkswagen is not just a car manufacturer – we are shaping the future of mobility, and our collaboration with Uber accelerates that vision,” said Christian Senger, CEO of Volkswagen Autonomous Mobility.
In March 2024, Volkswagen became the first vehicle manufacturer to develop a Level 4 AD service vehicle for large-scale production. Level 4 AD means the car can handle most driving situations independently in a defined area, such as a city. It can also drive alone, without passengers.
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